Pain Management

Pain management is a necessary process for anyone who has been injured or is otherwise in chronic pain.

Complete Injury Management helps people in Las Vegas manage their pain and recover from their injuries as quickly as possible. There are many different pain management treatments including medication, injections, and therapy which can ease your suffering and improve your quality of life.

Medication for Pain Management

Pain medication is the most common type of pain management, and is given to most patients suffering from pain – typically in conjunction with other techniques. The most common type of pain medication is NSAIDs, or Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin and ibuprofen. NSAIDs work well for minor pain, however for more severe pain opioids can be prescribed.

Opioids include drugs such as morphine, and are effective for severe pain. However, due to their side-effects and high potential for drug-abuse, it’s rare for opioids to be prescribed for more than a few weeks unless a patient is experiencing chronic severe pain. For specific conditions including metastatic bone pain, neuropathic pain, and visceral pain steroids may be used temporarily as a form of therapy to help the patient recover.

Injections for Pain Management

Therapeutic injections are commonly used for patients suffering from severe pain. They can be used in conjunction with medication or physical therapy. There are many types of pain management injections including epidurals, nerve blocks, and joint injections.

Although most commonly used during childbirth, epidurals can also be administered when a patient is suffering from severe pain after surgery, a traumatic injury, or to inject steroids. Typically the drugs are injected through a catheter which is inserted into the epidural space in the spine. It can be used to remove the sensation of pain by blocking the signal of nerve fibers in the spinal cord.

Nerve blocks are used when a patient is suffering from acute pain in a specific area of the body. This blocks the nerves in that organ or region from sending pain signals to the brain. Nerve blocks can also be used to diagnose the source of pain or to predict the outcomes of a given treatment such as surgery. Similarly, joint injections can be used to numb the pain from a specific joint in the body. This can be used to manage chronic pain, or to diagnose whether the joint is the source of the pain.

Therapy for Pain Management

Pain management therapy is used for most patients suffering from chronic pain. It has shown to be effective without the potential risk of side-effects or addiction inherent in medication. The most common type of therapy is physical therapy, but cognitive therapy and meditation are becoming more popular treatment options as well.

Also known as physiotherapy, physical therapy can relieve pain, increase the speed of recovery, and restore function to the patient. This can include heat and ice packs, ultrasounds, stretching, strengthening exercises, and low-impact aerobic conditioning. Typically a physical therapist will go through several exercises with the patient and then recommend they continue them on their own at home.

Stress and pain are closely related. Chronic pain can cause a great deal of stress, but stress can also intensify the feeling of pain. Meditation is a common therapeutic treatment for chronic pain as it can quiet the patient’s mind and relax their body. This typically involves focusing the mind on a single idea or on your thoughts and sensations. Patients who practice meditation regularly experience less stress and have an increased tolerance for pain.

If you’re experiencing mild or severe pain and could benefit from pain management treatments, please contact Complete Injury Management by visiting our contact page. We help people in Las Vegas get the treatment they need to recover and feel better.